Concorde crash case quashed

AN airline was cleared of manslaughter yesterday over the crash of a Concorde which killed 113 people.

The Air France Concorde crashed into a hotel near Charles de Gaulle airport []

A French appeals court overturned a conviction against US carrier Continental Airlines for the July 2000 crash.

The court ruled that mistakes by the company’s mechanics were not enough to make it legally responsible for the deaths.

The Air France Concorde crashed into a hotel near Charles de Gaulle airport, Paris, killing all 109 people aboard and four on the ground.

A French court convicted Continental and one of its mechanics in 2010 and imposed £1.6million in damages and fines.

A French court convicted Continental and one of its mechanics in 2010

It ruled that the mechanic fitted a metal strip on a Continental DC-10 that fell on to the runway, puncturing the Concorde’s tyre and causing a fire.

Megan McCarthy, a spokeswoman for the airline, said: “We have long maintained that neither Continental nor its employees were responsible for this tragic event and are satisfied that this verdict was overturned.”